Category 3: One or Two Nominal Variables

If we have a design with only nominal variables—that is, counts, not means, in the cells—then we have two options, both of which are nonparametric tests. The only question we have to ask ourselves is whether there are one or two nominal variables. If there is one nominal variable, then we choose the chi-square test for goodness of fit. If there are two nominal variables, then we choose the chi-square test for independence. The decision for category 3 is represented in Table E-3.